


the most amazing things

by nasa



Category: Marvel (Comics), Marvel 3490, Marvel 616
Genre: F/M, Getting Together, Pregnancy, Sex Pollen, Unplanned Pregnancy, only previously though and only very briefly mentioned
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-17
Updated: 2018-07-17
Packaged: 2019-06-06 18:37:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,206
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15200942
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nasa/pseuds/nasa
Summary: Natasha's been acting weird ever since the Incident.





	the most amazing things

**Author's Note:**

  * For [jayjayverse](https://archiveofourown.org/users/jayjayverse/gifts).



Natasha had said it wouldn’t change anything.

 _Of course it won’t,_ she had said, even as she pulled on her jeans, buttoned up her top. _It’s - it’s fine, we were under the influence we didn’t - I know it didn’t mean anything._

And Steve, heart dropping to his stomach, had agreed, because he didn’t want to make it any worse for her. God knows the entire world knows about his crush on Nat, Nat included; and though it’s not his fault that an alien vomited sex pollen in their faces, it _would_ be his fault if he refuses to respect her boundaries.

He should have known she was lying. Or at least, he should have known it wasn’t _true._ Because god knows she’s probably doing her best to keep things the same, but she’s so - different around him. Colder, quieter. Sadder. She doesn’t joke with him the same way she did before, doesn’t needle at him or tease him or poke at his sides in the kitchen as he downs his fourth stack of pancakes, telling him he better _be careful what you eat, you’re getting a bit chunky, I think there might be a little bit of fat alongside those muscles._

She stops coming into his studio to flop down on the spare armchair and chat; she stops falling asleep against him during movie nights; she even stops chatting with Steve when he seeks _her_ out, staying uncharacteristically quiet in her workshop as she messes with wires and blowtorches and gadgets Steve can’t hope to understand.

At first he thinks it’s just him, that it’ll get better with time, that it’s just awkwardness. But the weeks turn into months, and she doesn’t get better, just changes more. She stops drinking. It’s a good thing, for sure - Steve’s been trying to quietly convince her to go sober for months, now - but it’s so abrupt, the change. One morning there’s a well-stocked liquor cabinet in the kitchen, and the next, it’s empty, leaving nothing but Wolverine’s beers in the fridge.

“Hey, Nat,” he says, one afternoon, catching her in the kitchen by herself.

All he wants to do is congratulate her on her decision to go sober. But when she turns to him, she looks so downtrodden - exhausted and grey, face drooping whenever she sees Steve - that he just drops it. “Sorry,” he says, “Nevermind,” and watches her head off to the workshop without another word, wondering what the hell happened to his best friend.

Things come to a head when he walks in on Nat in the workshop, four months after the incident, popping a handful of pills into her mouth.

He doesn’t mean to pry. He wants to, but he doesn’t _mean_ to. But the bottle is sitting out on the table in front of her, and Steve doesn’t even choose to read it, just sees it. _Prenatal vitamins._ Nat is taking prenatal vitamins. Nat is -

“Oh my god,” Steve hears himself say and watches as Nat startles in response, knocking the open bottle over. Pills go spilling over the table, and Nat curses, turning away from Steve so she can gather them all together. Her hands are shaking.

“What are you doing down here, Steve?” she asks. Her voice is cold and harsh and sounds nothing like her.

“You’re pregnant,” Steve says.

Nat finally manages to get the pills back in the bottle. She turns it over in her hands, still not looking back at Steve. “So what if I am?”

“Oh my god,” Steve says again, knowing he’s repeating himself, but not caring. “Oh, my god, we’re having a baby.”

Natasha actually jolts at that, turning to Steve with a strange expression on her face. “Would you want that?”

“Would I - would I _want_ that, of course I would - _Nat.”_ And Steve can’t help it anymore, is stumbling forward towards Nat, and he’s so grateful when she doesn’t move away, when she lets him envelope her in his arms, resting his chin on the top of her head. “We’re having a baby.”

Almost tentatively, she wraps her arms around Steve, curling her fingers in the back of his shirt. “Yeah,” she murmurs. “We're having a baby.”

Steve just holds her for several long, long moments, feeling her shake in his arms, feeling dampness on his shoulder. He doesn’t say anything, doesn’t move, just waits until she feels more steady in his arms before finally pulls back to look her in the eye.

“I’m sorry,” she says, before he can speak, wiping at her eyes with the heel of one hand. “It’s the hormones.”

“You don’t have to apologize,” Steve murmurs. He wants to raise his own hand, brush away the tears lingering on her cheeks, but he expects his touch would be unwelcome. “I’m in this with you, Nat, I promise you that. We - god, we’re gonna be _parents._ I know - I know these last few months have been - awkward, for you, and I’m sorry about that, but I promise - I _promise,_ if you let me play my part in this, I won’t make it worse for you. I won’t let my feelings get in the way, and I won’t make it awkward for you -“

“Wait,” Natasha interrupts. “What do you mean, your feelings?”

Normally, the idea of spilling his heart out would make Steve blush, but now, he just shakes his head. “I mean my feelings for you,” he says. “But I promise, I -“

“Wait,” Natasha says again, a strange note creeping into her voice. “You have _feelings_ for me?”

Steve pauses. “I - _do_ I, of course I do, everyone knows I - did you not know?”

“No,” Natasha says, a bit hysterically, “No, I did _not_ know that.”

“Oh, god,” Steve says, dropping his hands from Natasha’s shoulders and taking a step backward. “I’m so sorry. I - oh, gosh, you’re probably really mad at me now, aren’t you? Look, I can give you space -“

But before he can so much as finish the sentence, Natasha is launching herself at him, settling her palms on either side of his face and kissing him breathless.

It takes Steve a moment to get on board, a moment his brain spends going _wait, what,_ but then everything reboots and he finds the presence of mind to raise his hands to Natasha’s waist, pulling her closer to him. With her body pressed up against Steve’s like this, he can feel the slight swell of her belly. She’s _pregnant._ She’s carrying Steve’s baby.

Finally, they break for air. Steve leans their foreheads together, closes his eyes. “I take it you’re not disturbed, then?”

“Disturbed?” Natasha laughs, an unsteady sound. “Steve, I’ve been in love with you since I met you.”

Steve’s heart staggers in his chest. “I love you, too,” he hears himself say, and finally opens his eyes to see Natasha staring back at him. Her eyes are green and soft and Steve swears he could fall right into them.

“We’re having a baby,” Natasha says. She sounds almost giddy, and her smile is well on it’s way to taking over her face.

“Yeah,” Steve confirms, unable to stop himself from leaning in and pressing another kiss to Nat’s lips, her cheeks, her nose. “We’re having a baby.”

**Author's Note:**

> title from 'Some Nights' by fun.


End file.
